Having already been announced for the rest of the Continent, the Volkswagen Golf R mit Performance Pack is coming to the UK in time for Christmas. It's set to cost £2,300 over the regular car, and we'll leave it to you to decide whether the kit is worth the premium.

I spy a spoiler...

Yes, but only for the hatchback, mind, and you'll be hard-pushed to notice the extra 20kg of downforce that it's said to bring. There's no increase in power, although the removal of the nanny-state 155mph speed limiter now means that the hatchback and estate can achieve 166mph and 168mph respectively.

They're blinging brakes.

Well, the calipers are painted silver, so yeah. The 'R-Performance' items are also 2kg lighter, nestling behind the 19-inch 'Spielberg' alloys. Did Steven have a hand in their design? Who knows? One thing to note is that the Performance Pack will only be available on models equipped with the DSG gearbox, not the manual. However, the Golf R is arguably at its hypersonic ground-covering best when fitted with the flappy paddle box.

Are those exhaust pipes different, or am I going mad?

Well spotted. The press pics show the new optional titanium exhaust, which is supplied by expert tuning firm Akrapovic. This system saves 7kg over the standard setup, and promises a fierce racket at full pelt and during gearshifts. Valve control technology is designed to keep things nice and refined when you don't feel like scaring small children.

So how much is the new exhaust?

It's available separately from the Performance Pack and is priced at £2,975. It can be added to DSG or manual cars, and is available on the three- and five-door models, as well as the estate. As it stands, pricing for the Golf R range goes like this; £32,710 for a manual hatchback, £33,995 for the same car with DSG transmission and £35,700 for the estate. We'd go for the estate, in black so as not to draw attention, and quietly destroy everything else on the road.